The Londonderry sifter. (South Londonderry, Vt.) 1883-19??, 1887-10-13
TALMAGE'S SERMON.
The Weekly Discourse of the Great
Brooklyn Preacher
subject of Discourse, ssEree
Grnce.'

That all the worlds which on cold win
ter's night make the heavens one great glitter
are mhabitantleSs is an absurdity. Phlloso.
pliers tell us that many of these worlds are
too hot, or too cold, or of too raretied atmo-
sphere for residence. But, if not fit for
human abode, they may be fit for beings diff
ferent from and superior to ourselves. We
are tod that the world of Jupiter is changing
until it is almost fit for creatures like the
human race, and that Mars would do for the
human family with little change in the
structure of the respiratory organs. But that
there is great world swung somewhere, vast
beyond imagination, and that it is the head
quarters of the universe and the metropolis of
immensely, and has population in numbers
vast beyond all statistics, AMI appointments
Of sp,endor beyond the capacity OF canvas or
poem, or angel TO describe, is as certain as
the Bible is authentic. Perhaps some o. the
astronomers with their big telescopes have
already caught glimpse OF it, not knowing
what it is. We spell it with six letters and
pronounce it heaven.
That is where Prince Jesus lived nineteen
centuries ago, He was the Kings son. 1t was
the old homestead of eternity, and all its
castles were as old as God. Not frost had
ever chilled the air. Not tear had ever
rolled down the cheek of one of its inhab-
ltants. There had never been in it head
ache, or sideache or heartache. There
had not been funeral in the memory of the
oldest inhabitant, There had never in all the
land been woven black VEIL for there had
never heen anything to mourn over The
passage OF mi lions OF years had not wrinkled
or crippled or bedimmed any of its citizens.
All the people there were in state of eternal
adolescence. What floral and pomonic bright
ness! Gardens of perpetual bloom and
orchards in unendng frnitage, Had some
spirit from another world entered and asked.
iS iny hot TO- boz. ia,
sorrows what is death! the brightest of the
intelligences would have failed to give deini-
ton, though to study the question there were
silence IN heaven for half an hour. The
Irlnce OF whom speak had honors, emolu-
ments, acclamations, such as no other
frlnce, celestial or terrestrial, ever
enjoyed. As he passed the street, the
inhabitants took off from their browS gar
lands of white lilies and threw them in tue
way. He never entered any of the temples
without all the worshipers rising up and bow
ing in obeisance In all the professions of
the high days he was the one who evoked the
loudest welcome. Sometimes on foot, walk
ing in loving talk with the humblest OF the
land, but at other times he took chariot and
among the 10000 that David spoke of his
was the swiftest and most flaming; or, rs
when John described him, he took white pal
trey with what prance of foot, and arch of
neck, and roll OF name, and CLEAN of eye is
only dlmiy suggested in the Apocalypse He
was not ike other Princes, waiting for the
father to die and then take the throne.
When few years ago an artist in Germany
made picture for the Royal gallery repre-
senting Emperor William on the throne, and
the Crown Prince as having one foot on the
step OF the throne, Emperor William ordered
the picture changed, and said: Let the
frlnce keep his foot off the throne till l
leave it.
Already enthroned was the heavenly
Prince, side by side with the Father What a
circle of dominionl What myrmidons of adj
mlrers! What unendin5 round of gories!
All the towers chimed the Princes praises.
Of all tho inhabitants, from the center OF the
city, on over the hills and clear down to the
beach, against which the ocean OF immensely
rolls its billows the Prince was the acknowl-
edged favorte. No wonder my text says
that The was rich" Set all the diamonds of
the earth in one scepter, build all the palaces
of the earth in one Alhambra, gather all the
pearls of the sea in one diadem, put all the
values of the earth in one coin; the aggregate
would not express his aiiuence. yes, Paul
was right. Solomon had in gold $685. > O00o
and Ill silver Il, ST. sterling But a
greater than Solomon is here. Not the mill
lonalre, but the quadriilionaire of heaven. To
describe his celestial surroundings the Bible
uses all colors, gathering them in rainbow
over the throne and setting them as agate in
the temple window, and hosting twelve of
them into wall from striped jasper at the
oase to transparent amethyst in the capstone,
Whlie Between are green of emerald and
snow pearl, and blue of sapphire, and yellow
OF topaz, gray of chrysopraSus and fame of
jacinth. Ali the loneliness of landscape in
foliage, and river, and rill, and all enchant-
ment aqUamarne, tie sea of glass mingled
With lire as when the sun sinks in the Medi-
terranean. All the thrill of music insiru-
mental and vocal, harps, trumpets, doxo-
iogles There stood the Prince, surrounded
by those who had under their wings the
velocity of millions of miles in a second rich
in love, rich in alteration, rich in power, rich
IN worship, rich in holiness, rich as Col.
But one day there was a big disaster in
department of Gods universe A race fallen
A world in ruins! Our planet the scere OF
cataStrophe A globe swinging out into dark
ness, with mountains and seas and islands.
an awful centrifugal Of sin seeming to over
power the Lea l5ful centripeta of righteous
mess, and from it a groan reached he wen.
such sound had never been heard there
Plenty OF sweet sounds, but never an outcry
OF distress or an echo of agony. At that one
Sroan the Prince rose from all the blissfW
CIRCUMFERENCE ana started for the outer gate
and descended into the night of this wolli.
Out of what bright harbor into what rough
sea! Stay with us" cried angel after angel
the Prince, II cannot stay; l must be
off for that wreck OF world.
must stop that groan. | must hush that
distress. must fathom that way l must
redeem those nations. Farewell, thrones and
temples. companions cherubic, seraphic, arch
angelic! Excuse this absence, for / will
come back again, carrying on my shoulder q
ransomed world. Till this is done | choose
earthly scott to heavenly reclamation, and a
Gait e pen to a Kings palace, frigid zone of
earth to atmosphere of celestial radiance.
have no time to lose, for bark We the groan
that grows mightier while wait. FAREWELL!
farewell!n
"Ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus
Christ, that, though He was richly for your
sakes lie became poor"
Was there ever contrast so overpoweripg
as that between the monday of Chr SITS
celestial departure and the midnight of his
earthly arrival! Sure enon2h, the angels
were out that night in the sky, and a special
meteor acted as escort, but all that was from
other worlds and not from this world. The
earth made no demonstration of welcome IL
one of the great Princes of the world steps
out at depot cheers resound, and the bands
play. and the flags wave. But for the arrival
of this missionary Prince of the skies not a
torch tiared, not trumpet blew, not plume
futtered. All the music and the pomp were
overhead. Our world opened for him nothing
better than barn door. The Rajah of
Cashmere sent to Victoria bedstead of
carved gold and canopy that cost $3.50, 900,
but the world had for the Prince Of Heaven
and Earth only q litter of straw. The crown
jewels in the Tower of London amount to
Sl5, 100000. but this member of eternal
royalty had not where to lay his head. To
know how poor he WIS., ask the camel drivers,
ask the shepherds, ask Mary, ask the three
wise men of the East who afterward
came there, young Caspar and middle aged
Balhasar and old Melchoir. To know how poor
he was, examine all the records of real estate
in all that oriental country, and see what
vineyard, or what house, or what field he
owned Not one. OF what mortgage was he
the mortgages. OF what tenement was he
the landlord! Of what lease was ne the
lesseel Who ever paid him rentl Not own
ing the boat on which he sailed or the beast
on which he rode. or the pillow on whish he
slept He had so little estate that in order to
pay his tax he had to perform miracle,
putting the amount of the assessment in a
fsh's mouth and having it hauled ashore.
And after his death the world rushed in to
take an inventory of his goods, and the entire
aggregate was the garments he had worn,
sleeping in them by night and travelling in
them by day, bearing On them the dust OF
the highway and the saturation Of the sea.
Paul in my text did not go far from hitting
the mark, did he, when he said of the mission
ary Prince: For your sakes he became poorf
The world could have treated him better il
it had chosen. 1t had all the means for max